Russia decreed Friday that Leningrad may revert to its pre-revolutionary name of St. Petersburg, a symbolic break with the Soviet Union's Communist heritage.
The independent Interfax news agency said the presidium of the Russian Supreme Soviet, or parliament, agreed to approve the city's request to re-adopt its old name.Leningrad, the Soviet Union's second-largest city, was named after state founder Vladimir Lenin in 1924. In a controversial referendum earlier this year, the city voted to restore the name St. Petersburg, subject to Russia's approval.
The name change took immediate effect, dealing another blow to Lenin's once-revered memory in a country where he and the communism he espoused have become increasingly discredited.
St. Petersburg was founded in 1703 by Czar Peter I, who employed French and Italian architects to construct a city of graceful palaces and canals. The city was renamed Petrograd in 1914 and became Leningrad in 1924 after Lenin died.